Great Cuckoo-Dove Reinwardtoena reinwardti Scientific name definitions

47·5–52·5 cm; 208–305 g. Very long tail ; head , neck, breast and underparts pale bluish grey, darker on flanks and undertail-coverts; throat white; breast feathers often washed pink and fringed pinkish, creamy white or white; mantle , back, rump, uppertail-coverts and central rectrices rich chestnut; wing-coverts and scapulars dark chestnut; secondaries, primaries and their coverts black; outermost pair of rectrices greyish white on outer webs with black subterminal bands; inner webs with broad black bands and grey tips; next pair of rectrices black basally, grey centrally with black-and-chestnut subterminal band; next pair tipped with broad chestnut bands; amount of chestnut increases progressively, with only a little black and grey basally; underwing black; iris yellowish white or pink with red outer ring; orbital skin purplish pink to wine red; bill brown distally, occasionally with white tip; base and cere red to purplish pink; legs and feet red, pink or purplish red. Most likely to be confused with smaller Macropygia amboinensis which usually has vinous wash to underparts, barred darker and contrasting less with less richly coloured upperparts (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ). Female can have orbital skin duller or more brownish red and iris more yellowish. Juvenile dull grey-brown, darker on wings with dirty white throat; rump and uppertail-coverts reddish brown, fringed darker; central rectrices sooty brown with chestnut wash; some mantle and wing feathers fringed rufous. Race <em>griseotincta</em> larger (wing of male 254 mm, versus 238 mm in nominate) (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ) and darker, notably on undertail-coverts, with creamy-white coloration restricted to forehead, face and throat, and pale pearly grey breast (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ); brevis considered to be distinctly smaller (wing 210 mm) and paler than other races, with entirely creamy-white head and underparts, contrasting strongly with chestnut-maroon upperparts (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ). Clinal variation in colour tone within nominate race, with darkest birds in N and palest in SW.

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Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Principally in canopy and middle level in primary forest, but also frequents forest edge, second growth and gallery forest, at least on Biak I (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ). Occurs from sea-level up to tree-line at 3380 m on mainland, and up to 1190 m on Karkar I; considered to be commonest between 800–1400 m in Moluccas; lowland birds tend to occur in the vicinity of hills. Often solitary, but may be found in pairs or groups of up to ten, sometimes with other frugivores (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ), feeding on fruiting trees.

No information.

Feeds on a variety of small seeds and fruit; pebbles found in some stomachs. Known to prefer fruit from Schefflera and related plants of Araliaceae, with records of birds feeding on Schefflera chaetorrhachis and Osmoxylum sp. in Papua New Guinea (3 Symes, C. T., and S. J. Marsden (2007). Patterns of supra-canopy flight by pigeons and parrots at a hill-forest site in Papua New Guinea. Emu 107(2):115–125. Close ). Comes to the ground periodically to feed.

Most frequently heard is a series of “cookuwook cookuwook cookuwook...” notes, similar to call of Macropygia amboinensis but delivered more slowly (c. 1 phrase per second) and more trisyllabic, often given for long periods, and also gives series of c. 12 deep “hoo” notes that drop in pitch and accelerate in finale (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ).

Little data on seasonality except from New Guinea, where species apparently breeds year-round, perhaps peaking in Oct–Nov, but nests or young found Mar–Aug and Oct–Dec, and birds in breeding condition found in several other months; a nestling was found on Buru in Feb. Usual display flight is deeply undulating, sweeping up steeply at first, briefly spreading wings and tail at apex, or clapping wings together, before entering into steep downward glide, but also performs Macropygia-like display too (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ). Nest is a flat or slightly bowl-shaped (4 Mack, A. L. (1994). Notes on the nests and eggs of some birds at the Crater Mountain Research Station, Papua New Guinea. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 114(3):176–181. Close ) structure of sticks (dimensions 20 cm × 80 cm) (5 Symes, C.T. and Marsden, S.J. (2005). Notes on the breeding of Salvadori’s Teal Anas waiguiensis and other birds in Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Papua New Guinea. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club 125(1): 11–27. Close ), or with sticks, roots, moss and ferns, lined with finer plant material (5 Symes, C.T. and Marsden, S.J. (2005). Notes on the breeding of Salvadori’s Teal Anas waiguiensis and other birds in Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Papua New Guinea. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club 125(1): 11–27. Close ), usually placed 1·2–5 m above the ground in a bush or tree, once at c. 12 m in Pandanus (4 Mack, A. L. (1994). Notes on the nests and eggs of some birds at the Crater Mountain Research Station, Papua New Guinea. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 114(3):176–181. Close ); also occasionally nests on ledges 2·4–12 m above ground in caves or river gorges (5 Symes, C.T. and Marsden, S.J. (2005). Notes on the breeding of Salvadori’s Teal Anas waiguiensis and other birds in Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Papua New Guinea. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club 125(1): 11–27. Close ). Clutch one white egg; incubation perhaps by both sexes; recently hatched chick has pinkish-white down, while adult-size nestlings has black bill and legs (5 Symes, C.T. and Marsden, S.J. (2005). Notes on the breeding of Salvadori’s Teal Anas waiguiensis and other birds in Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area, Papua New Guinea. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club 125(1): 11–27. Close ).

Not globally threatened. Very little information available on status. Overall, species is fairly common in Papua New Guinea, where density of 4–6 birds/km² in Crater Mountain Wildlife Management Area (3 Symes, C. T., and S. J. Marsden (2007). Patterns of supra-canopy flight by pigeons and parrots at a hill-forest site in Papua New Guinea. Emu 107(2):115–125. Close ); not uncommon in S & SE, but uncommon in NE. Fairly common to common in hills of Seram, but scarce in lowlands.